I was in the store of a major high-street health and beauty brand at the weekend. It's got a broad appeal, but well known as being a teenage girl's destination.
The store has just been spruced up. Big bold colours on the wall with huge wording on them. The decor felt vibrant and "now". The products on the shelf felt the same, all sorts of shampoos, shaving products and skin care solutions that were not on the market 6 months ago.
And the music? Well, they were playing a track that was over 50 years old. So while everything I could see was 2024, what I could hear was 1972. And not some huge crowd pleasing song that's had a new lease of life through TikTok. No, it's was a bit rocky, a bit dull and might possibly have been the subject of a two-hour documentary on BBC 4 at some point.
Why would you do that to your brand? Why spend thousands (in this store alone) in making it look modern and then spend more money making it sound so dated?
The answer, I suspect, is that someone somewhere in chain doesn't know how the wrong sound can affect a brand's fortunes.
Euan McMorrow is the Managing Director of AVC Music. Want to have a chat? Hit contact us at the top of the page.